Aluminum phosphates are known in the art and used for a variety of end-use applications. Conventional methods known in the art for making the same typically involve combining an aluminum source, such as an aluminum salt, with a phosphorus source, such as phosphoric acid and reacting the two to produce an aluminum phosphate (AP) precipitate or condensate. The AP is filtered, washed and dried to produce a powder. The resulting AP powder can be used in a variety of applications, such as in coatings or in composite constructions to provide desired performance properties.
While such conventional methods known in the art are effective for making AP, such methods are known to produce unwanted byproducts that may operate to impair a desired performance property of the AP alone or in a composition or composite, and/or may not be desired from a health, safety or environmental perspective. Additionally, conventional methods known for making AP do not enable production of AP particles and compositions having certain desired characteristics and/or performance properties, thereby effectively limiting the ability of such produced APs to be placed into certain end-use applications calling for specific AP properties and/or characteristics.
It is, therefore, desired that methods for making APs be developed that enable APs to be made in the manner that minimizes or eliminates the formation of unwanted byproducts that can either impair the performance of the APs or compositions containing the same, or that may create unwanted health, safety or environmental issues. It is further desired that such methods for making APs enables one to specially engineer AP particles and compositions having certain desired characteristics and/or performance properties not otherwise obtainable using conventional methods of making, to enable the use of such formed APs in a greater variety of end-use applications. Further, it is desired that such methods enable forming APs in a manner that is relatively more cost effective and/or efficient as compared to the conventional methods of forming APs.